Team Ukraine Wins Bronze in the Final Race of the 2026 Junior World Biathlon Championships: How It Happened
Oleksandra Merkushyna moved up from fifth place in the race's final leg.
Team Ukraine finished third in the junior women's (U21) closing relay at the 2026 Junior World Biathlon Championships, held February 28 to March 8 in Arber, Germany. The national team was represented by Tetiana Tarasiuk, Kseniia Prykhodko, Valeriia Sheihas, and Oleksandra Merkushyna, who made the decisive move after a penalty lap.
Earlier on the competition's final day, Ukrainian athletes Alina Khmil, Khrystyna Ruda, and Viktoriia Khvostenko also won bronze in their relay.
How Ukraine's Women Fared in the Final Race of the 2026 Junior World Biathlon Championships
- Tetiana Tarasiuk was the first to start the relay for Ukraine. The biathlete shot clean from prone and cleared the second stage without a miss too. Tarasiuk handed off the relay in sixth, 22 seconds behind Switzerland's leader.
- Kseniia Prykhodko used one spare round at the first shooting stage, moving up to second place. The Ukrainian finished her standing-stage shooting in 21 seconds and came out the leader, with a 4.8-second cushion.
- Valeriia Sheihas took over the relay in second. She missed once at the prone stage, holding onto second place, and left the final shooting stage in third after using all three spare rounds.
- Oleksandra Merkushyna closed out the race for Ukraine. She skied a penalty lap after the prone stage, dropping to fifth. But at the decisive shooting stage, Oleksandra shot with just one spare round and moved up to third.
Germany's team won the race. France finished 3.7 seconds behind the leaders, with Ukraine rounding out the top three.
2026 Junior World Biathlon Championships Junior Women's Relay, 4x6 km, Results
- Germany (0+10) 1:13:36.5
- France (2+8) +3.7
- Ukraine (1+10) +19.5
With that, Ukraine won six medals at the 2026 World Championships season. Three medals came in individual races, the team's only gold went to Oleksandra Merkushyna in the 60-strong mass start, and two bronzes came from the women's and junior women's relays.
2026 Junior World Biathlon Championships Medal Table
- Latvia — 7 (3 gold + 3 silver + 1 bronze)
- Slovakia — 3 (3+0+0)
- Norway — 8 (2+5+1)
...
- Ukraine — 6 (1+2+3)
With that, the national team had its most successful Junior World Biathlon Championships in history. Before this, Ukraine's best result was three medals in 2016. The Ukrainian women also won small crystal globes in the relay and Nations Cup standings.
Ukraine's Best Junior World Biathlon Championships Results
- 2026 — 6 medals (1 gold + 2 silver + 3 bronze)
- 2016 — 3 (0+2+1)
- 2019 — 2 (2+0+0)
- 2024 — 2 (1+1+0)
- 2023 — 2 (0+0+2)